Food Adventure! Bologna!

[Munchkin]

I want to try to make bologna. Anyone else tried this? Looks simple but what do I know. I have been hunting for the casings and it looks like it can be boiled or baked.

Love bologna and the good stuff has gotten so expensive that it's worth a try to make it myself. The idea is to end up with something that tastes like deli bologna. You would need a slicer to really get the deli style slices and if this turns out well I might look for a used one or something affordable. Might be able to get a used one at a restaurant supply or CL.

But I wanted to make it first and see if it's worth the time.

 

[Clematis]

What goes in bologna? Haven't had it in 40 years.

 

[Munchkin]

What goes in bologna? Haven't had it in 40 years.

It's mostly meat, whatever you want, but the most common used are beef and pork. Seasonings vary but the ones I have seen the most are cardamom, mace, garlic, liquid smoke, and onion powder. Some recipes use dried milk as a binder and others don't. The pinkish color is from using Morton Tender Quick and that is salt, sugar, and sodium nitrate. Some people don't want the nitrates and they use sugar and pink salt.

A lot of the people who still do this are hunters looking for ways to use their game meat. Usually they mix it with beef or pork because just the game meat is too 'gamey' and doesn't have enough fat. And they have found the sausage/bologna is family friendly and even the kids will eat it.

You can just bake it in a loaf pan. I want mine to look a bit more like deli bologna so I will run everything through a food processor and stuff it in a casing. Then I will leave it in the fridge for 24 hours or so while it cures. Then either bake or boil it, depending on what kind of casing I get. You could also do it in a smoker. After it's cooked you refrigerate it for another day, then slice. The casings I am thinking of buying make a 10lb bologna. And it can be sliced and frozen so it may well be worth the effort considering a 'decent' bologna at the deli is now running darn close to $10 per pound.

I have made jerky for years and it's wonderful. I almost always am considering some kind of food experiment. If this works well I would even try it with chicken. You can even make olive or pickle loaf.

 

[Susan in Tennessee]

Wish I lived near you. I love making trying things like this! Have you ever made gyro meat?

 

[Munchkin]

Wish I lived near you. I love making trying things like this! Have you ever made gyro meat?

Yup! Not very different from making bologna or sausage. Just start with ground lamb. Or goat if you are adventurous. A couple weeks ago I ran across 6 pkgs of ground lamb in the discount bin!

 

[JackieOnLine]

thanks, now I am hungry
I hope you do make your own - surely it's more healthy? what is it about store "lunch meat" that is so bad, nitrates??

 

[Munchkin]

thanks, now I am hungry
I hope you do make your own - surely it's more healthy? what is it about store "lunch meat" that is so bad, nitrates??

Yup! They are used in very small amounts to cure the meat. But the worry about nitrates today is mostly unfounded because they use MUCH less than in the past.

I am still busy researching this and I think I will be trying it soon. I think I have found everything I will need to make it happen.